Kathleen Brooks
I've been through a lot of different life events that have shaped who I am today. I survived a plane crash four months after college, then we had a house fire when I was pregnant with our first child. We moved to California and had our first son three months prematurely with a lot of disabilities. He was his own little man, and we lost him at a year and a half after he was in the hospital for 15 months and then home for 3 months on a respirator and other equipment. We'll see him again, but it was hugely hard and hugely educational in terms of just you'll do anything for your children. We had our next two boys and raised our two sons who are in their late 30s and 40s now. I had an international business and spoke in several countries, helping people learn about leadership, and I also had product and developed companies. I set that aside when our boys were older, in middle school and high school, so that I could take a deep dive into just being there for them. After they went off to college, I went, well, Lord, what would you like for me to do? And that's when coaching came up. I had done speaking in my life while developing business, but I hadn't been specifically trained to be a coach. I find that courage builds upon itself, kind of stacks, and it helps you through hard, hard times. I've had breast cancer three times, and I've been through a variety of unusual events. To me, my achievements are when I see women grow and move from stuck to forward progress. I've worked with women who have gone from a professor to a provost in their careers, or I've seen women who were losing their marriage stay in their marriage and are thriving in their marriage. Those are my favorite professional achievements. I don't get any badges or titles, it's kind of like the motherboard on a computer - I'm just shoring people up, and so I get the blessing and the privilege of watching them grow or watching them overcome challenges.
• Master Certified Christian Life Coach
• Maxwell Leadership Team Certification
• New Life Ministries Coach
• Grief Coach
• Bachelor's Degree in Education from Colorado State University
• AACC
• ICCA
• Women's Ministry at Church (15-18 years)
• President of PFA Board (Parent Faculty Association)
• School Board Member
• Breast Cancer Support
• Music for the Soul Ministry
• The Navigators Ministry
• Campus Crusade for Christ (Cru)
• Wounded Warriors
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to the Lord. It's not any success that I have is not about me, it's about what He, hopefully, is doing in and through me. And so, that's the bottom line for me. Did the Lord allow me to have great parents and great family and have a supportive husband and great kids to drive? All of that comes through from him, right? They are welcome from here. But, yeah, anything that I've gotten accomplished in this lifetime is due to that grace and his personally and the unexpected ways that he blesses my life through people.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say make sure to develop, really develop and hone in on your niche. And work proactively, not to get distracted by the shiny object. Proactively, you know, figure out what God has gifted you with and what your passion is for. And then around that passion, ask what keeps you up at night? What does your audience, what keeps our audience up at night? And then to fill that void and help them spot. Then you have to be persistent in the coaching industry. It's not always easy, and you know, with the economy right now, there can be some rough spots. And so, you don't give up when you're, this is a cross country run. This is not running around a track which is perfectly level and, you know, has land and all that. No, this is a cross-country run, so there's gonna be very exciting and elating times, and there's gonna be really hard times. And if the end result is that this is where, you know, you need to go, don't give up. Because it just, it just takes courage one step at a time. You can't, some days, you just have to stay in the moment and take the next step. One step at a time.
Locations
Build Your Courage
Westlake Village, CA